It occurs to me, based on my own pattern of behavior, that when people have a forum for writing they tend to opine rather than consider. Something I am thinking about right now is the difference between sophistry and Socraticism. I am suggesting we do a lot more sophistry than Socratic discussion.
The problem is blogs give all of us such a forum very easily, but their immediate nature prompts us to state opinions with even less considertion than traditional outlets. I admit that blogs can be much less unideirectional, but I know most of us do not use that fact to full effect. One question I have about this is whether the opining is really just a cover for deep thought, or if people really do hold opinions as solidly as they make them sound. I know in verbal communication both have been true for me in the past, but most of the time I was really just trying to figure things out, no matter how strongly I stated the case (I argued radical capitalism right up until the moment I declared myself a socialist - only to find everyone else had downgraded to the modern liberal capitalist view, blech - but that's another story). So, maybe we are still thinking even if we don't sound like it. Which raises another question, do other people know that? (Or, alternatively, I could ask, am I the only one who works that way? Maybe most people like to be "right" no matter what.)
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